Takes-The-Shot
The self called Takes-The-Shot ("Takes" for short) is an Argonian traveller and thief-in-training. As of the death of High King Torygg she is staying at the Bee and Barb in Riften. History Upbringing On the 26th of Mid-Year, 4E 182; Takes-the-Shot was born a single child. Her family lived a life of luxury - never having to work a day in their adult life, due to them inheriting all of their wealth from her late grandmother's earnings as an arena fighter. In contrast to her parents' traditional upbringing, Takes-The-Shot was brought up without ingesting any Hist sap, or much mention of the Hist at all; though she was still given a Saxhleel name despite her never being taught Jel. These differences were an attempt by her parents to make her fit in, as they believed their child would be better off if she was 'Less Argonian', even going so far as to have her back teeth filed down to appear less bestial. Childhood Growing up, Takes was a very spoiled child - having everything given to her on a silver platter, as her parents coddled her for most of her childhood. She spent days snout-deep in books and, and despite her parents best efforts, never fully grasped any of the schools of magic. Instead, she became engrossed in tales of rogues and outlaws, with novels like 'Red Crater' and 'The Goblin with the Golden Arm' becoming some of her most beloved books, much to her parents dismay. Her interest piqued when she came across the local legend of the late Count Corvus Umbranox and his inheritance of the Gray Cowl of Nocturnal. This help create her idea of what a 'thief' was, a role-model devoid of any realism and one that only a clueless, sheltered child could actually believe existed. As the young Argonian grew up, she spent more of her time climbing around the city of Anvil, often coming home covered in scratches and dirt from doing 'thief-things'. This only further upset her parents, who were too afraid to correct their child. Leaving Cyrodiil By her eighteenth birthday, Takes-the-Shot was fed up with her life. Years of meaningless tea parties and hunting trips with people she didn't know made her feel worthless. She felt as if she would die, having never made anything of herself, which was a fate that terrified her. So instead of going to a Mages College to 'sort her life out' like she promised, Takes instead took her college funds and hit the road; hoping an opportunity to become a thief would just land in her lap. After a month of drifting around Cyrodiil, she came across a book called 'Shadowmarks'. "An entire province where every house has a guide on how to rob it? Perfect!" she thought. A year later, sparing no expense on comfort, she took a carriage through the Riften-Cyrodill border. Life in Skyrim Upon being asked for her identity at the checkpoint, she came up with a fake name, on the spot, (because all thieves have a cool alias). With her limited knowledge on what a typical 'Argonian' name was, she said; "This one calls herself Takes-the-Shot" in her best (and slightly racist) 'Black Marsh' accent. Thankfully, the Nords at the gate were equally as clueless about the Lizard-Folk as she was, and let her through. Tired from a long day of sightseeing she regretfully chose to stay at the city of Riften and after paying the, totally legit, visitor's fee to enter, when she saw a magnificent sight; A bartender kicking a thief out of his pub. Judging by the shifty character of the establishment she assumed this 'Bee and Barb' was actually a very secretive thief hideout, because why else would there be a tavern in the middle of such an awful city? Excited, she asked the grumpy looking woman behind the bar, who she assumed was their Queen; "I'm- uhh... It ''is here to join the Thieves Guild, yes?" Begrudgingly, their 'leader' replied "''Talen...we got another." ''using what Takes could only guess was one of those secret thieves cants. The previously seen bartender told her that this self-proclaimed ''Wretched hive of scum and villainy'' was, in fact, ''beneath the city. And without so much as a 'thank you', she bolted out the door to the aforementioned 'Ratway'. The Guild Before she had time to complain about the awful time she had walking here and how her socks got completely soaked 'on the way, the funny sounding old man demanded the "lass" explained her self. (...) Stopping to recover from laughing so hard and to confirm that she was ''actually serious, he politely declined her offer to join 'Your Thieves Guild', though she was already storming out in a tantrum before he could apologise. Being the stubborn Argonian she was, Takes came back again the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that, and the day after that (You get the picture)... Every time getting the same response. After several weeks of back and forth from the Bee and Barb to the Ragged Flagon; both sides gradually gained some strange empathy for the poor woman, similar to how the image of a sad puppy may make you feel. Becoming fed up of washing her soup-stains off of the bed sheets ever night; the 'Queen of Thieves' told Takes that she could sleep in their wine cellar for free. Similarly, the old man living in the sewer eventually caved into her pleas, giving her some second hand clothes the guild had in storage after possibly being reminded of a certain niece (either that or her constant begging was really getting on his nerves). And so, despite not having any real proof she was part of the Thieves Guild, she began to plan her first big 'job'. 'Appearance ' The way Takes looks makes her previous social class rather apparent. She often paints 'eyebrows' on her face and uses heavy eyeliner to come across as more expressive (due to the constraints of her facial anatomy). She wears little make-up besides that, on account of her scales. Speaking of which, upon closer inspection Take's scales, particularly her scutes, are unusually dry - this isn't something wrong with her per-say, she was just never taught how to properly care for them due to the subject being 'too Argonian'. She also polishes her horns constantly, which is like the Saxhleel equivalent of stuffing a sock down your trousers. 'Personality ' Let's be clear, Takes-the-Shot is the type of person to call you out for using your fruit fork on the main course. She is a complete and total idiot, an 8-year-old brat in a grown woman's body. If things do not go 100% the way she wanted, she will make sure you know about it, with a voice one could only describe as 'a trumpet with an uptight frog stuck in it'. '' She struggles to relate to other Argonians, once again due to her parents. Since a lot of their social ques rely on 'subtle movements of muscle and tail' she often comes off alien and robotic to other members of her kin, as she lacks that Hist-given knowledge. This is especially troublesome in Takes' case, as she has quite a habit of wagging her tail while talking, which is considered a rather inappropriate gesture in Argonian culture. Whilst Takes hasn't had to defend herself, or by the Hist - actually '''kill a person '(yet), she hopes she can just shoot them somewhere non-vital and run; hopefully not leaving them to bleed out, like they probably will. As spending a few weekends trophy hunting with family has only left her somewhat competent with a bow and little else. Murder just isn't something she enjoys, to be honest. Also the whole general dislike of death makes her fairly uncomfortable around mercenaries, sell-swords and the like; because "Someone who kills people everyday probably has a couple of Deadra in their head". - Yeah, she's a bit of a narcissist. '''Trivia * She rarely takes her boots off because she hates cold/dirty floors. * You better believe she rolls her 'r's when she talks. * She has a minor allergy to dairy; drinking milk will cause her gills to swell up. * Her favourite author is Quill-Weave. * Having her back teeth filled down does mean she has an easier time eating fruit and vegetables than most Argonians, though she still looks like an idiot while doing it. * Her birthday is on the 26th of Mid-Year, making her a Steed. * She has trouble pronouncing her Argonian birth-name, as she doesn't know Jel. * Her favourite food is steamed salmon with dill. * The cloth attached to the rings on her horns are soaked in strong perfume, which she smells to comfort herself if she experiences or smells something gross, which happens a lot. * Due to this, a very overwhelming scent of cinnamon nearly always radiates off of her. * Growing up in Anvil means she has a slight 'Hammerfellian' accent. * Being near Hammerfell also means she knows some rudimentary 'martial arts', or so she says. * It legitimately took her until she was 15 for her to realise she could breathe underwater... * Her phantasmal self (long story) is available as a follower here: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/85857/? * (Believe it or not; this is only like, the first THIRD of my shitty character's story. And that's not even getting into the reason why she spent an extra year in Cyrodill.) Gallery Lizardscrem.png|aaAAA Happytimes.png|stupid clown costume. LizardNight.png|Doing thief things? LizardGhost.png|'Phantom Takes-the-Shot' the follower. LizardFell.png|Takes-the-Shot messing around pre-Skyrim. HAtecold.jpg|Takes trying to deal with the cold... LizardReference.png|Takes-the-Shot's current outfit. Lizardsleep.png|Her current 'sleeping conditions'. Lizardclothes.png|Her appearance upon entering Riften. LizardHorns.png|A closer look at her horns. LizardSlav.png|"Boo! There, you happy?" lizardgren.png|Being accepted into the Guild! lizardriften.png|''Taking'' in the sights of Riften. Category:Elder Scrolls Category:Character Category:Non-canon